The prevalence of u. Diversum carriage in different age groups of cattle

Ureaplasma diversum is an opportunistic pathogen of cattle, it is capable to colonize reproductive and respiratory systems. The most of ureaplasma carriage cases both in the reproductive and the respiratory tract are asymptomatic. Respiratory tract carriage is more specific for calves, while the ureaplasma carriage in the distal parts of the reproductive tract is more frequent in adult cattle. The purpose of this study was to compare the prevalence of U. diversum among heifers and cows of different ages within the single cattle-breeding farm. To assess U. diversum carriage frequency among cows and heifers smears from the surface of the mucous membranes of the vestibule of vagina were collected. Detection of U. diversum in the obtained clinical material was carried out by real-time PCR. As the result, the study found that the prevalence of carriage is significantly higher among the heifers (75%) than in adult cows (56.25%). At the same time, among adult cows the carrier frequency decreases significantly with increasing the number of calves. The results indicate a high significance of the contact pathway for the transmission of U. diversum, since the high frequency of the ureaplasma carriage in heifers that had not previously undergone insemination. In addition, they are consistent with data on the possibility of developing protective mechanisms against colonization with ureaplasmas. It is possible that the transferred diseases lead to the formation of weak immunity to repeated infection of U. diversum, therefore the frequency of carriage among young cows is higher than in older age groups. In addition, according to the obtained date, it is necessary to take into account the age structure of the group for assessment the prevalence U. diversum carriage in the female cattle, since this factor may have a pronounced effect on the result of the epizootic examination.

Ureaplasma diversum, заболевания репродуктивной системы КРС, ПЦР, ПЦР в реальном времени, Ureaplasma diversum, diseases of the reproductive system of cattle, PCR, real-time PCR

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